Portable highway warning device

ABSTRACT

A portable highway warning device comprised of one or more rumble strips. Each rumble strip is comprised of a plurality of modular strip sections made of a polymeric material. Each strip section has end edges with alternating notches and tabs sized and spaced for overlapping engagement with respective tabs and notches on opposite end edges of other ones of the strip sections for connecting the end edges of the strip sections together. Embedded in each of the strip sections are a plurality of metal plates or bars that run transversely between side edges of the strip sections in laterally spaced relation from one another to provide ballast to the strip sections.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation-in-part of U.S. patent applicationSer. No. 12/341,220, filed Dec. 22, 2008, the entire disclosure of whichis incorporated herein by reference.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

This invention relates generally to a portable highway warning devicecomprising any desired number of portable rumble strips for use in highspeed highway conditions to alert drivers of automotive vehiclesincluding both passenger vehicles and trucks of an approachingcondition.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

It is generally known to use rumble strips in high speed highwayapplications to provide a perceptible noise and warning vibration whenautomotive vehicles including passenger vehicles and trucks drive overthe rumble strips to warn the drivers of an approaching condition suchas a work site, construction site, slow speed zone, checkpoint, tollbooth and so on, without alarming the drivers and without adverselyaffecting the stability of the vehicles. Some types of rumble strips areintended to be permanently installed for long-term use while others areintended to be portable for use at work zones and other applications ofrelatively short duration. Portable rumble strips should be reusable andquick and easy to deploy and remove. Also they should have the abilityto remain in place under heavy traffic, including heavy trucks athighway speeds, preferably without the use of adhesives or fasteners.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The above and other benefits and advantages of portable rumble stripsare accomplished in accordance with the present invention by providingone or more elongated rumble strips each having a substantially greaterlength than width, and top and bottom surfaces, and end and side edges,each rumble strip being fabricated of a suitable flexible polymericmaterial having a plurality of laterally spaced, transversely extendingmetal plates or bars embedded therein to provide ballast to each rumblestrip. Having the metal plates or bars run transversely across the widthof each rumble strip also provides stiffness in the transverse directionso the side edges of each rumble strip don't curl.

In accordance with one aspect of the invention, each rumble strip may berolled up lengthwise when not in use for ease of handling and storage.

In accordance with another aspect of the invention, the side edge ofeach rumble strip that faces toward oncoming traffic may be beveled, andthe adjacent end of the metal plates or bars embedded therein may besimilarly beveled to permit the beveled ends of the plates or bars toextend partway into the beveled side edge of each rumble strip to givethe beveled side edge increased stiffness.

In accordance with another aspect of the invention, each rumble stripmay have upper and lower thicknesses, with the lower thickness made of asofter plastic material than the upper thickness to further increase thegrip between the bottom surface of each rumble strip and the roadway.

In accordance with another aspect of the invention, each rumble stripmay be comprised of a plurality of modular strip sections each havingend edges with alternating notches and tabs sized and spaced foroverlapping engagement with respective tabs and notches on opposite endedges of other ones of the strip sections for connecting the end edgesof the strip sections together.

In accordance with another aspect of the invention, the alternatingnotches and tabs may be dovetailed to provide dovetail connectionsbetween the overlapping end edges of the strip sections to preventhorizontal separation between the overlapping end edges of the stripsections.

In accordance with another aspect of the invention, the tabs on the endedges of the strip sections may have aligned through holes that arealigned with the through holes in the end edges of other strip sectionswhen in overlapping engagement with each other for receipt of a pinthrough the aligned holes in the overlapping end edges for furthersecuring the overlapping end edges of the strip sections together.

These and other objects, advantages, features and aspects of the presentinvention will become apparent as the following description proceeds.

To the accomplishment of the foregoing and related ends, the invention,then, comprises the features hereinafter more fully described andparticularly pointed out in the claims, the following description andthe annexed drawings setting forth in detail certain illustrativeembodiments of the invention, these being indicative, however, of butseveral of the various ways in which the principles of the invention maybe employed.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

In the annexed drawings:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of one form of portable rumble strip of thepresent invention.

FIG. 2 is a top plan view of the rumble strip of FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is an enlarged fragmentary longitudinal section through a portionof the rumble strip of FIG. 2.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of another form of portable rumble strip ofthe present invention.

FIG. 5 is a top plan view of the rumble strip of FIG. 4.

FIG. 6 is an enlarged transverse section through the rumble strip ofFIG. 5.

FIG. 7 is a perspective view of one of the metal plates or bars that isembedded in the rumble strip of FIGS. 4-6.

FIG. 8 is an enlarged fragmentary perspective view of one side of therumble strip of FIGS. 4-6.

FIG. 9 is an enlarged transverse section similar to FIG. 6, but throughanother form of portable rumble strip of the present invention.

FIG. 10 is a schematic perspective view showing multiple sets ofportable rumble strips of the present invention extending across onehighway lane in spaced relation to one another.

FIG. 11 is an enlarged schematic perspective view of one of the sets ofportable rumble strips of FIG. 10 shown extending across one highwaylane in spaced relation to one another.

FIG. 12 is a perspective view of another form of portable rumble stripof the present invention which is comprised of a plurality of modularstrip sections.

FIG. 13 is an enlarged top plan view of one of the modular stripsections of FIG. 12.

FIG. 13A is an enlarged top plan view of another form of modular stripsection similar to FIG. 13 but showing hand grip slots adjacent the endsof the modular strip section.

FIG. 14 is an enlarged transverse section through the modular stripsection of FIG. 13.

FIG. 15 is a further enlarged fragmentary perspective view of the rightend edge of the modular strip section of FIG. 13.

FIG. 16 is an enlarged fragmentary perspective view of the joined endedges of two of the modular strip sections of FIG. 13.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Referring now more particularly to the drawings, wherein the samereference numbers followed by a prime symbol (′) are used to designatelike parts, and initially to FIGS. 1-3, there is shown one form ofelongated portable rumble strip 1 of the present invention. Each rumblestrip 1 preferably has substantially flat top and bottom surfaces 2 and3 and opposite side edges 4 and 5 and end edges 6 and 7, and isdesirably made of a suitable high strength, weather resistant polymericmaterial such as polyurethane or other polymeric material with similarproperties that has sufficient flexibility to permit each rumble stripto be rolled up lengthwise from end to end for ease of transportationand storage when not in use and just as easily unrolled duringplacement.

Although the dimensions of each rumble strip 1 may vary, each rumblestrip is desirably of sufficient length to reach across a single highwaylane, which is typically 11 feet wide. Also each rumble strip has awidth that is preferably between 8 inches and 16 inches and morepreferably of approximately 12 inches. Moreover, the rumble strips areof sufficient thickness to create a noticeable audible and vibrationwarning to drivers of automotive vehicles, including trucks when drivenover the rumble strips, but not so severe as to alarm the drivers, andwithout causing any adverse effect on the stability of the vehicles. Tothat end, the rumble strips preferably have a thickness of between ½inch and 1 inch and more preferably of approximately ¾ inch.

Because each rumble strip by itself isn't heavy enough to remain inplace under heavy traffic at highway speeds, a plurality of laterallyspaced, transversely extending metal plates or bars 8, preferably madeof steel or cast iron, are embedded within each rumble strip to providethe necessary ballast to keep each rumble strip in place preferablywithout having to use any adhesive or fasteners. This makes the rumblestrips particularly easy to deploy and remove and reuse for work zonesof relatively short duration.

The metal plates or bars 8 run transversely across the width of therumble strips 1 to provide stiffness in the transverse direction so theside edges 4, 5 of the rumble strips don't curl in use. Also the platesor bars are desirably embedded in the approximate center of thethickness of each rumble strip as schematically shown in FIGS. 3 and 6.

These metal plates or bars shouldn't be too wide, and there must besufficient spacing between adjacent plates or bars so as not tointerfere with rolling of each rumble strip into a fairly tight roll. Tothat end, each of the plates or bars 8 preferably has a width of between½ inches and 2½ inches and more preferably of approximately 2 inches,and a spacing therebetween of preferably 1½ inches to 2 inches and morepreferably of approximately 1⅞ inches. Further, each of the plates orbars preferably has a thickness of between ¼ inch and ½ inch and morepreferably of approximately ⅜ inch.

The length of the plates or bars 8 will vary depending on the width ofthe rumble strips. For example, if the width of the rumble strips isapproximately 12 inches, the plates or bars preferably have a length ofbetween 10 inches and 11 inches and more preferably of approximately 10⅜inches. If the width of the rumble strips is more or less than that, thelength of the metal plates or bars may be proportionately reduced orincreased as desired.

The number and combined weight of the individual plates or bars embeddedin the rumble strips should be sufficient to cause the rumble strips tostay in place under heavy traffic at highway speeds, but not make therumble strips so heavy that they cannot easily be rolled up or moved byone or two persons. For example, the overall weight of each rumble stripthat is approximately 11 feet in length is desirably between 100 and 110pounds. To provide a better grip between the bottom surface 3 of therumble strips 1 and the roadway and to reduce possible skidding ofvehicle tires against the top surface 2 of the rumble strips when wet,both the top and bottom surfaces of the rumble strips may have texturing9. Also, the texturing may be in the form of an open diamond pattern 10as schematically shown in FIG. 8 to provide a channel effect to permitthe escape of water from both underneath and above the rumble strips.

In addition, the leading side edge 4′ of each rumble strip 1′ that facestoward oncoming vehicle traffic may be beveled as shown in FIGS. 4-6 tosubstantially eliminate any possible movement of the rumble stripscaused by initial contact of the vehicle tires with the rumble strips.The included angle of the beveled leading side edge 4′ of the rumblestrips is preferably between 10° and 15° and more preferablyapproximately 12°. Likewise, the leading end 11 of the metal plates orbars 8′ that are embedded within each rumble strip 1′ is desirablysimilarly beveled so as to permit the beveled ends of the plates or barsto extend partway into the beveled leading side edge 4′ of the rumblestrips 1′ as schematically shown in FIG. 6 to give the beveled side edgeincreased stiffness. One such metal plate or bar 8′ with beveled leadingend 11 is schematically shown in FIG. 7.

To further increase the grip between the bottom surface of the rumblestrips and the roadway, a lower thickness 15 of each rumble strip 1″ maybe made of a softer plastic material than the upper thickness 16 asschematically shown in FIG. 9. For example, the lower thickness of eachrumble strip may have a shore A hardness preferably between 40 and 60and more preferably approximately 45 and the upper thickness of eachrumble strip may have a shore A hardness preferably between 65 and 80and more preferably 75. However, these relative hardnesses may be variedas desired.

Also the upper thickness 16 of each rumble strip 1″ may be several timesgreater than the lower thickness. For example, where the overallthickness of each rumble strip is approximately ¾ inch, the upperthickness 16 may be approximately ⅝ inch and the lower thickness 15 maybe approximately ⅛ inch. In any case, the metal plates or bars 8″ thatare embedded within each rumble strip are desirably embedded in theapproximate center of each rumble strip as further schematically shownin FIG. 9.

Suitable hand grip slots 18 may be provided in each rumble stripadjacent one or both ends as schematically shown in FIGS. 4, 5 and 8 forease of picking each rumble strip up. Also as previously indicated, eachrumble strip may be rolled up lengthwise from end to end in a relativelytight roll when not in use for ease of storage and transport to anothersite for reuse as desired. For example, an 11 foot long rumble striphaving a width of approximately 12 inches and a thickness ofapproximately ¾ inch, and having 33 plates or bars embedded therein,each having a width of approximately 2 inches, a thickness ofapproximately ⅜ inch, a length of approximately 10 inches and a spacingof approximately 1⅞ inch therebetween can be rolled up into a rollhaving an outer diameter of between approximately 18 inches and 48inches, and will have an overall weight of between approximately 100pounds and 110 pounds. However, if desired, a fewer number of plates orbars may be embedded in the rumble strips, which will make the rumblestrips proportionately lighter. Also the rumble strips may be ofdifferent lengths, which will affect their overall weight as well.

Any number of portable rumble strips of the present invention can beused in any number of sets of rumble strips placed across a roadway withany desired spacing between the sets of rumble strips and the rumblestrips in each set. For example, FIG. 10 shows three sets 20 of rumblestrips 1′ placed across a highway lane 21, with six rumble strips ineach set. FIG. 11 shows one of the sets of portable rumble strips 1′ ofthe present invention with the beveled leading side edges 4′ facing thedirection of oncoming traffic. The spacing between each rumble strip ineach set may vary, for example, between 1 foot and 3 feet. Also, thespacing between each set of rumble strips may vary, for example, between15 feet and 20 feet. However, these distances may be varied as desired.

FIG. 12 shows another form of rumble strip 25 of the present inventionwhich may be substantially the same as the rumble strips 1 previouslydescribed. However, the rumble strip 25 shown in FIG. 12 is comprised ofa plurality of modular strip sections 26. Each strip section may havealternating notches 27, 27′ and tabs 28, 28′ in opposite end edges 29and 30 sized and spaced for overlapping engagement with correspondingtabs and notches at opposite end edges 30 and 29 of other of the stripsections for connecting the overlapping end edges of any desired numberof strip sections together. This has the advantage that the individualstrip sections 26 are substantially lighter and shorter than an entirerumble strip 25, making it easier to handle the individual stripsections.

In one form of the invention, each of the individual strip sections 26may have a length of between approximately 3½ feet and approximately 4feet, whereby three strip sections joined together in end to endrelation will be of sufficient length to reach across a single highwaylane, which is typically 11 feet wide. Each of the individual stripsections may be made somewhat longer or shorter than that or ofdifferent lengths if desired. Also more or less than three modular stripsections may be used to make up a single rumble strip if desired.However, it has been found that modular strip sections having a lengthof between approximately 3½ feet and approximately 4 feet are lightenough and short enough to be easily handled by a single person, and canalso be easily stacked and shipped on pallets with the strip sectionslaying flat.

Another advantage in making the rumble strips in modular sections isthat the overall weight of each rumble strip can be increased byincreasing the weight of the individual strip sections and still keepthe weight of the individual strip sections light enough to be easilyhandled by a single person. This can be done, for example, by increasingthe width of each of the transversely extending metal plates or bars 35that are embedded within the polymeric material of each strip section asshown in FIGS. 13 and 14 to increase the overall weight of each stripsection, for example, from approximately 35 pounds to approximately 50pounds. Thus when three modular strip sections 26 are joined together toform a single rumble strip 25 having a length of approximately 11 feet,the overall weight of the rumble strip may be increased, for example,from approximately 105 pounds to approximately 150 pounds, to make therumble strip more stable. However, it is still desirable to provide aspacing between the plates or bars 35 of preferably 1½ inches to 2inches and more preferably of approximately 1⅞ inches, to give theindividual strip sections some flexibility so they conform to thesurface of the roadway on which they are placed.

The notches 27, 27′ and tabs 28, 28′ at the end edges 29 and 30 of thestrip sections 26 are desirably dovetailed as shown in FIGS. 13 and 15whereby when the notches and tabs at opposite end edges of the stripsections are brought into overlapping engagement with each other, thedovetail configuration will provide a releasable connection between theoverlapping end edges of the strip sections.

To provide a more secure connection between the overlapping end edges ofthe strip sections, aligned through holes 36 (shown in FIG. 15) may beprovided in the tabs 28 (and 28′) at the respective end edges to permitinsertion of a locking pin 38 (shown in FIG. 16) through the alignedholes 36 in the overlapping end edges.

If need be, the through holes 36 in the tabs 28, 28′ may be reinforcedto prevent the locking pins 38 from tearing out of the tabs. Anysuitable reinforcing material may be used for this purpose including,for example, providing fiberglass mesh in the end edges of the stripsections or molding metal tubes 39 in the through holes 36 (see FIG. 15)during the molding process.

If the strip sections 26 are provided with a beveled leading edge 40 asshown in FIGS. 12-16, the leading end 41 of the metal plates or bars 35that are embedded within the strip sections is desirably similarlybeveled so as to permit the beveled ends of the plates or bars to extendpartway into the beveled leading edge of the strip sections asschematically shown in FIG. 14 to give the beveled leading edgeincreased stiffness as before.

If desired, a hand grip slot 42 may be provided in each of the stripsections 26 at the approximate center of the length of each stripsection adjacent the trailing edge 43 as best seen in FIG. 13 for easeof picking up the individual strip sections. In that event, any platesor bars 35′ that are in transverse alignment with the hand grip slot 42are desirably of a shorter length than the other plates or bars 35 toprovide adequate space for the hand grip slot in each of the stripsections.

Alternatively, suitable hand grip slots 42′ may be provided in each ofthe strip sections 26′ adjacent one or both ends thereof asschematically shown in FIG. 13A for ease of picking up the individualstrip sections from either end thereof.

If the leading edge 40 of the strip sections 26 is beveled as shown inFIGS. 12-16, the tabs 28, 28′ at opposite ends of the beveled leadingedges of the strip sections are desirably similarly beveled. Also thethrough holes 36 in those end tabs 28, 28′ are desirably open at the topand the tab 28 at the end edge 29 is desirably intersected by a crossslot or pocket 45 in the upwardly facing surface of the beveled leadingedge 40 so that when the locking pin 38 is inserted all the way into thealigned through holes 36 in the overlapping dovetail end portions, aright angled end portion 46 at the outer end of the locking pin 38 willbe in substantial alignment with the pocket 45 to permit rotation of theend portion into the pocket for securing the locking pin in place asschematically shown in FIG. 16. To disassemble the strip sections whenpinned together, the right angled end portion 46 of the locking pin 38would need to be lifted out of the pocket and rotated in the reversedirection into vertical alignment with the upper open length of thethrough holes 36 in the leading edge tabs to permit the pin to becompletely withdrawn from the through holes.

If the leading edge 40 of the strip sections is not beveled, the frontface of the leading edge of the strip sections may be provided with anotch (not shown) that intersects the through hole 36 in the tab 28closest to the leading edge for receipt of the right angled end 46 ofthe locking pin 38 once the locking pin is fully inserted into thethrough holes in the overlapping ends of the strip sections to securethe locking pin in place. To disassemble the strip sections, the end ofthe pin would need to be pulled out of the notch and the pin withdrawnfrom the aligned through holes in the overlapping end edges of theinterconnected strip sections as before.

From the foregoing, it will be apparent that making the rumble strips ofa modular design has the advantage that the individual modular stripsections may be made relatively light and short for ease of handling bya single person and may be linked together to create rumble strips ofany desired length and weight. Making the rumble strips of a modulardesign also allows the overall weight of the rumble strips to beincreased beyond a weight that could reasonably be handled by one or twopeople if the rumble strips were not of a modular design. Moreover, theshorter length individual modular strip sections can be laid flat on apallet one on top of another which makes them easier to transport andstore.

Although the invention has been shown and described with respect tocertain embodiments, it is obvious that equivalent alterations andmodifications will occur to others skilled in the art upon the readingand understanding of the specification. In particular, with regard tothe various functions performed by the above-described components, theterms (including any reference to a “means”) used to describe suchcomponents are intended to correspond, unless otherwise indicated, toany component which performs the specified function of the describedcomponent (e.g., that is functionally equivalent), even though notstructurally equivalent to the disclosed component which performs thefunction of the herein illustrated exemplary embodiments of theinvention. In addition, while a particular feature of the invention mayhave been disclosed with respect to only one embodiment, such featuremay be combined with one or more other features as may be desired andadvantageous to any given or particular application.

1. A portable highway warning device comprised of one or more rumblestrips, each rumble strip comprising a plurality of modular stripsections, each of the strip sections being made of a polymeric materialhaving top and bottom surfaces and end edges and side edges, the endedges of each of the strip sections having alternating notches and tabssized and spaced for overlapping engagement with respective tabs andnotches on opposite end edges of other of the strip sections forconnecting the end edges of the strip sections together.
 2. The deviceof claim 1 wherein the alternating notches and tabs are dovetailed toprovide dovetail connections between the overlapping end edges of thestrip sections.
 3. The device of claim 1 wherein the tabs on the endedges of the strip sections have aligned through holes that are alignedwith the through holes in the opposite end edges of other of the stripsections when in overlapping engagement with each other for receipt of apin through the aligned holes in the overlapping end edges for furthersecuring the end edges of the strip sections together.
 4. The device ofclaim 3 wherein there is a cross slot or pocket adjacent one of the endedges of the strip sections, and the pin has a right angled end portionthat is rotatable into the slot or pocket when the pin is fully insertedinto the aligned holes to secure the pin in place.
 5. The device ofclaim 4 wherein the cross slot or pocket extends from the top side ofthe strip sections partway through the tab closest to the one side edgeand transversely intersects the through hole in the tab closest to theone side edge.
 6. The device of claim 1 wherein the tabs in the endedges of the strip sections contain fiberglass mesh reinforcement. 7.The device of claim 1 wherein the through holes in at least some of thetabs are reinforced by metal tubes molded in the through holes.
 8. Thedevice of claim 1 further comprising one or more hand grip slots in eachof the strip sections.
 9. The device of claim 1 wherein a hand grip slotis provided in each of the strip sections adjacent one or both endsthereof.
 10. The device of claim 1 wherein a plurality of metal platesor bars are embedded in each of the strip sections intermediate the topand bottom surfaces to provide ballast to the strip sections, each ofthe plates or bars running transversely between the side edges inlaterally spaced relation from one another.
 11. The device of claim 10wherein one of the side edges of each of the strip sections is beveled,and one end of the metal plates or bars is similarly beveled and extendspartway into the beveled side edge of each of the strip sections. 12.The device of claim 10 wherein a hand grip slot extends through each ofthe strip sections between the top and bottom surfaces intermediate theend edges adjacent one side edge of each of the strip sections.
 13. Thedevice of claim 12 wherein the hand grip slot has a greater length thanwidth and extends lengthwise adjacent the one side edge.
 14. The deviceof claim 13 wherein one or more of the plates or bars are in transversealignment with the hand grip slot and are shorter in length than otherof the plates or bars that are not in transverse alignment with the handgrip slot.
 15. The device of claim 10 wherein each of the strip sectionshas a length of between 3½ feet and 4 feet.
 16. The device of claim 10wherein each of the strip sections has a width of between 8 inches and16 inches and a thickness of between ½ inch and 1 inch.
 17. The deviceof claim 16 wherein each of the strip sections has a width ofapproximately 12 inches, a length of approximately 3¾ feet and athickness of approximately ¾ inch.
 18. A portable highway warning devicecomprised of one or more rumble strips, each rumble strip comprising aplurality of modular strip sections, each of the strip sections beingmade of a polymeric material having top and bottom surfaces and endedges and side edges, the end edges of each of the strip sections havingalternating notches and tabs sized and spaced for overlapping engagementwith respective tabs and notches on opposite end edges of other of thestrip sections for connecting the end edges of the strip sectionstogether, the tabs having aligned through holes that are aligned withthe through holes in the opposite end edges of other of the stripsections when in overlapping engagement with each other for receipt of apin extending through the aligned holes in the overlapping end edges forsecuring the end edges of the strip sections together, and a pluralityof metal plates or bars embedded in each of the strip sectionsintermediate the top and bottom surfaces to provide ballast to the stripsections, each of the plates or bars running transversely between theside edges in laterally spaced relation from one another.
 19. The deviceof claim 18 wherein the alternating notches and tabs in the end edgesare dovetailed to provide dovetail connections between the overlappingend edges of the strip sections.
 20. The device of claim 19 wherein aplurality of metal plates or bars are embedded in each of the stripsections intermediate the top and bottom surfaces to provide ballast tothe strip sections, each of the plates or bars running transverselybetween the side edges in laterally spaced relation from one another.